A dragon and a monk, disguised as ordinary people, approached the temple shrouded in Yin Qi.
Ao Qing looked back at the sky.
Without using their Divine Eyes, Lanruo Temple still appeared as a bright and sunny place.
But if they were to activate their Divine Eyes.
They would see the entire mountain peak where Lanruo Temple stood, enveloped by the resentment and demonic aura of Black Mountain.
The mournful howls of vengeful spirits echoed in their ears.
The thick Yin Qi sent chills down their bones.
This once pure land of Buddhism was now a desolate sight, with dust covering the temple and Buddha statues toppled.
Fahai, clutching his rosary, a hint of regret flashed in his eyes.
“Such a pity, so sad, so deplorable.”
In his eyes, the temple had completely lost the radiance of Buddha’s light.
The monks here.
Or rather, the monks who once resided here.
They succumbed to external desires. The teachings of Buddha did not take root in their hearts, allowing evil to fester.
They abandoned the monk's precepts and, consequently, lost Buddha's protection.
Fahai opened his Divine Eye, peering through the Yin Qi-laden land, and saw the numerous skeletal remains buried beneath the temple.
Amitabha.
The young-looking Abbot chanted another Buddha’s name.
He turned to Ao Qing, who was observing with a tranquil expression.
“Dragon King, when will the demonic beings arrive?”
Ao Qing was also using his Divine Eye to scan this world, hoping to find Xiaoqian’s bones first.
Hearing Fahai's question, Ao Qing pondered for a moment and pointed to the east, where the sun had just risen.
“After nightfall, female ghosts will come knocking.”
“If you can resist their temptations, they’ll retreat, and come back the following night.”
“If you can’t…”
Ao Qing didn’t finish his sentence, but the meaning was clear. He also cast a questioning look at Fahai.
The young but resolute monk clasped his hands together.
“This monk’s will is unbreakable.”
Ao Qing let out a chuckle.
If it was about the will to kill, he believed in Fahai.
But when it came to the will against women.
This Great Heavenly Dragon Fahai was not so strong.
However, Ao Qing didn’t reveal this.
He didn't want to harm Fahai, but if Fahai died due to his own weaknesses, no one could blame Ao Qing.
Yes, it was Ao Qing who brought Fahai here.
But Fahai lacked self-discipline and was unclean in his six roots.
If he were to be seduced by female ghosts and demons, allowing them a chance to take advantage.
If he were to die at the hands of the Black Mountain Old Demon, that couldn’t be blamed on Ao Qing, could it?
These two individuals, with their contrasting thoughts, stepped into this demonic lair together.
Ao Qing entered the temple and started wandering around casually.
He had used his Divine Eye to inspect the entire underground of Lanruo Temple.
Among the dense, thick tree roots, lay countless pale bones.
It seemed that Xiaoqian and the other female ghosts' remains were not here.
Perhaps the tree demon had hidden them separately.
Ao Qing wasn't in a hurry. He found a room to settle in and waited for nightfall.
On the other side.
Fahai removed his kasaya and yellow monk’s robe, leaving only his white sleeveless tunic.
He wanted to draw water from the well behind Lanruo Temple, but found it filled with bones.
The bones were numerous and white, but there were no mosquitoes, flies, or maggots. It seemed they had been dead for too long, and these insects had already left.
Fahai remained silent for a moment, clasped his hands together, and softly chanted Buddha’s name.
Then, he began to descend into the well, retrieving those pale bones one by one.
There were many bones in the well.
Fahai worked tirelessly all day, but still hadn’t reached the bottom.
This caused the monk to start chanting Buddha’s name again.
As dusk fell, Fahai stopped his retrieval. He arranged the bones neatly and, nearby, found an empty room to conduct his evening prayers.
The moment the moon rose.
Lanruo Temple seemed to come alive.
The toppled Buddha statues stood upright again, but they had transformed into the tree demon’s form.
Monks walked through the temple, but upon closer inspection, they were all ghostly figures with skeletal heads.
Ao Qing lay on his bed in the room, tossing and turning, unable to sleep.
A small ghost with a hint of intelligence perched on the beam above him, drooling as it watched him.
Ao Qing stared at the ghost for a long time. Suddenly, the ghost leaped, turned into a wisp of smoke, and disappeared into the beam.
Before Ao Qing could examine it further, he heard 莺莺燕燕 (ying ying yan yan) sounds from outside.
Knock, knock, knock!
Someone was knocking on the door.
“My lord~”
A sweet voice called out from outside.
Ao Qing lay in bed, his hands behind his head, watching the door without speaking.
Knock, knock, knock!
Three more knocks, and the woman’s voice rang out again.
“Is the gentleman inside?”
Ao Qing still didn’t speak.
The female ghost outside grew impatient.
There were only two people in the temple today.
One looked like a fierce monk, and the other looked like someone who would make you want to spread your legs.
This was a hard-won opportunity for the female ghost outside.
Knock, knock, knock!
She knocked on the door again.
This time, Ao Qing spoke.
“Come in.”
The female ghost outside was overjoyed. With a beaming smile, she pushed open the door and entered, saying in a sultry tone:
“My lord, you’re so naughty, do you enjoy seeing me worry?”
However, Ao Qing’s expression was cold, with a complex emotion, as if he was annoyed, disliked, but didn’t want to say it directly.
He coughed lightly.
“Find someone else.”
？？？
The female ghost was taken aback, confused.
Ao Qing sat up straight, and said sincerely:
“Girl, it’s not that you aren’t beautiful, it’s that I have high standards.”
“Alright, darling, find someone else, okay?”
The female ghost’s face began to change, first turning red, then green, then white.
She was angry, angry enough to turn red.
Then she was furious, furious enough to turn green.
Finally, she felt dejected, as if she had been struck by some existential crisis, causing her entire ghostly form to turn grey.
After a long silence.
To complete her task for the Old hag, the female ghost turned woodenly and left the room.